Great, we're doomed now!

"Haha, it's all just conjecture. There's no such thing as the Mu Continent." Masaki laughed heartily. "Even if it did exist... it couldn't possibly only have a history of ten thousand years."

He was initially driven by some impulse to search for various strange tales and mysterious phenomena, but ultimately found nothing. The so-called underwater pyramids, which were highly anticipated, were, in his professional view, nothing more than a masterpiece of geological activity.

Those people actually called this thing a human relic from ten thousand years ago—what a waste of their feelings!

"In the end, there is no such thing as a 'highly developed prehistoric civilization'..." There was a hint of melancholy and confusion in the man's eyes.

"Huh? You didn't know? Ancient relics dating back 30 million years have already been unearthed in the Americas."

"?!"

"The night breeze feels so nice~"

Ye Shou, facing the cool breeze, spoke calmly and casually, much like American citizens discussing what news the president had made yet.

"Actually, I'm also looking for the pyramids."

"..."

Masaki Keigo opened his mouth, speechless for a moment.

Seeing Zhengmu's expression, Ye Shou couldn't help but chuckle, then composed himself and stared intently at him.

"So... when you shook my hand just now, what did you 'see'?"

Chapter 201: This is what ordinary people like us in the Arcane System are like (4K)

It might be hard for some to believe, but Masaki Keigo wasn't a genius as a child; he was just a cheerful boy who was somewhat clever, completely different from who he is now.

A bit mischievous, a bit precocious, very righteous, and will stand up for friends who are bullied... but overall there's nothing special about him.

The change came one night during his adolescence when he had a strange nightmare, as if he had been thrown into the universe, surrounded by endless loneliness and a sense of weightlessness, with no end in sight.

Since then, he has often dreamed of strange things, sometimes like montage movie scenes, sometimes just dark fantasies, but more often meaningless and terrifying jumbled messages.

His parents took him to see a psychologist, but no matter what treatment they tried, it was ineffective. Seeing his increasingly worried parents, the precocious Masamu concealed the truth, making people believe that he was gradually getting better. What he was suffering from was just a common psychological problem during adolescence.

But only he knew that what he dreamed about was not some kind of abstract spiritual problem, but something with a source in reality!

As he grew older, he gradually guessed and deduced parts of the truth. Driven by a sense of crisis and a sense of justice, the boy changed his old ways and began to focus his energy on his studies and sports.

Incredibly, he suddenly "got it" after that, and could study any subject smoothly. He quickly transformed from an ordinary top student into a genius, and his physical abilities were also significantly better than those of his peers.

This made Masaki Keigo even more convinced that he had a "mission" and was a special person chosen by fate.

However, if he had met Ye Shou earlier, he would have known that he had "ancient genes (optical genetic factors)" in his body.

In fact, most modern humans have some of these genes to varying degrees, but the vast majority of them will never play a role in their lifetime; they simply continue to be passed down in the human DNA map as recessive genes.

Those who are naturally "dominant" will not show any special characteristics under normal circumstances.

There is only one exception:

When they find their "goal", they unleash amazing focus and drive, demonstrating a high level of growth that is not found in ordinary people!

An ordinary employee in the transportation department, after being given the opportunity to be assessed, mastered all skills from driving to shooting and even academic subjects in just a few months, and entered the Victory Team with his hard skills!

Daigo was a bit of a "late bloomer," only finding his calling after entering society, while Masaki Keigo realized this much earlier... though it caused him considerable pain.

To outsiders, Masaki Keigo's growth trajectory is a model of excellence. However, only Masaki himself knows that it is not due to ambition or passion, but rather to a "fear" deeply rooted in his soul.

That's not the kind of unease about the real world that ordinary people feel; it's a more primal and immense tremor.

He could see darkness swallowing starlight, and hear a deep, chilling rumble from the deep sea, powerful enough to freeze one's mind. Accompanying this perception was a fragmented yet clear vision of the apocalypse:

The city collapsed in the darkness, the sparks of civilization were extinguished one after another, and humanity struggled and cried out like an ant colony being submerged by the tide, ultimately returning to deathly silence.

These images didn't keep recurring, and the frequency of nightmares decreased as he grew up; otherwise, he would definitely have gone insane!

He understood that these things could not be understood by ordinary people and would only be regarded as the ravings of madness.

With no one to confide in and no one to share the burden, the weight he had to bear alone was almost crushing him.

Since no one believes me and no one can help me, I can only rely on myself.

Fear became his motivation. After starting to live alone, he worked even harder without any worries, strictly setting his own schedule and making the best use of every bit of energy and every moment.

He scrambled through multiple disciplines to acquire knowledge, because he believed that only sufficiently advanced technology could give humanity a chance to survive in the future.

Even if he didn't want to, he had to participate in some necessary social activities, because to transform technology into real power, he needed to have enough resources, so he couldn't just be a pure scientist.

Finding sponsors is never as good as having your own money!

Ultimately, he didn't think anyone else was reliable; they were all just a bunch of mediocre people...

Just now, at this noisy banquet, the moment he grasped Kuze Yoru's hand, the long-awaited "nightmare" descended!

A massive and clear "information flow," like an irresistible tide, instantly rushed into his mind.

The fragmented and terrifying apocalyptic images that had been haunting him rippled violently, as if a stone had been thrown into a lake. Then, a more concrete and awe-inspiring presence exploded in his mind, accompanied by ancient images—giants!

A giant of light that existed 30 million years ago!

Although there was no reason, he instinctively knew that it was the key to saving the world!

His previous headache and loss of composure stemmed from this sudden, informational shock and confirmation.

He initially thought this was the same as before, a secret only he knew. However, Ye Shou's seemingly casual question—

"Did you 'see' something?"

—It struck his heart, which had been locked for many years, like a hammer blow.

Masaki Keigo abandoned the carefully maintained social expression on his face and, for the first time, met Ye Shou's gaze without any attempt to hide it, his shock evident in his eyes.

Deep within those eyes lay years of accumulated weariness, an unavoidable wariness and scrutiny, and a hint of... disbelief.

"I don't quite understand what you're talking about... do you mean...?"

"Don't be so wary, actually I'm just like you." Ye Shou laughed self-deprecatingly, "Or you could say we're in the same boat—I can see it too."

"See……"

"A shadow from 30 million years ago."

"!"

Masaki Keigo's eyes widened, and he held his breath for a moment before subconsciously looking around, only to find that no one was paying attention to him.

He remained silent for a few seconds, seemingly lost in deep thought, the night breeze from the rooftop ruffling his hair. After a moment, as if having made up his mind, Masaki Keigo took a deep breath and finally, with great difficulty, revealed the secret he had kept buried in his heart for decades to the person who might be the only one who could understand.

"What I saw... was the end. It was endless darkness, from the deep sea... I have always been alone..."

Having kept it in his heart for too long, Masaki originally didn't want to reveal too much. He wanted to test Ye Shou a few more times to confirm whether the other party was friend or foe.

But perhaps Ye Shoutai was suited to be a listener, or perhaps his heavy sense of loneliness was already evident, he still couldn't help but say a few more words, and almost started to complain before stopping in time.

Ye Shou maintained a serious and focused expression throughout, occasionally glancing at the man in front of him and nodding almost imperceptibly.

Although he appears as a "villain" in the original work, Masaki is not an evil person in the usual sense.

Even in the finale, this person claimed that "his ideas were not wrong." This wasn't just stubbornness or arrogance; it was because he had truly realized his own problems.

His failure lay not in his "ideas," but in his "actions"!

Analyzing and utilizing the power of light is not a crime in itself, and the same applies to the Magus power system.

However, due to prolonged nightmares, his mental state has unknowingly gone astray. Pride and obsession have gradually distorted his original intentions, to the point that he resorts to force to seize the Spark Lens.

He believed that he was more capable than Daigo and could make Ultraman unleash greater power. He had the idea of ​​becoming the savior himself. Unlike the Kirieloid people who just talked big, if Masaki succeeded, he would actually go and do it.

However, power is an invisible curse. If it is not used with the right mindset, the distortions within one's heart will be magnified infinitely!

Simply put, Daigo always believed he was a member of humanity, just with greater abilities, and that there was no fundamental difference between them.

Masaki understood his mission too early, subconsciously distinguishing himself from ordinary humans, to the point that no one could get close to his heart, and he didn't even have a friend of equal status—this was his tragedy.

"I see, it's similar to me." Ye Shou nodded, unable to help but feel a sense of resonance.

“I have experienced most of what you have said… especially after learning about the fate of the ancient civilization and seeing the true form of the ‘heart of evil’.”

"Kuze, you too..." Masaki suddenly felt happy, as if he had become much more relaxed without realizing it.

It's not exactly honorable to say it, but when you find someone else suffering the same hardships as you... hey!

"You must have had a very tough time," Ye Shou sighed. "Like me, you had to bear it all by yourself."

Think about how similar he is to Masaki Keigo; both of them worked extremely hard from a young age, and as they grew up, they became worried because they knew too much, silently preparing for the future.

Aside from having a maid who can warm his bed, owning a small business of a certain size, and knowing an uncle surnamed Sawai... Ye Shou and Masaki are practically identical!

Masaki was extremely excited: "I've met 'superpowered people' before, but this is the first time I've met someone like myself."

"A superpowered person?" Ye Shou raised an eyebrow.

“That was a long time ago… My childhood neighbor was a bit ‘special’.”

At this point, Zheng Mu paused, seemingly having something difficult to say, but quickly looked at Ye Shou excitedly: "Do you know any other 'kindred spirits' besides me? How many people like us are there?"

"You're going to be disappointed. Right now, it's just you and me."

Ye Shou patted Zheng Mu, who was clearly disappointed, and said, "Today's occasion is not convenient. Come to my company another day, and I will tell you everything I know."

Masaki tilted his head and looked at his shoulder:

He doesn't like being touched by others. He didn't have this problem when he was a child, but he has become more and more closed off over the years... However, it may be psychological, because he didn't seem to mind Ye Shou's actions at all.

"Then it's a date."

“Great, I’m so glad to have found you. It really is a case of 'a chance encounter leading to a happy ending'.”

Ye Shou said a Chinese proverb, and with a very friendly smile on his face, he extended his hand to him again.

"By the way, welcome to TPC!"

-

"Hello, I have made an appointment with Manager Asami at 3:10 PM at Kirino of Taiyo Bed Company."

“Okay, please wait a moment… Mr. Kirino? There is indeed this record, but Manager Asami’s schedule has changed at the last minute, and he may not have time until 4 p.m..”

"Oh?"

A man in an old overcoat, with an unremarkable appearance, looked up in surprise: "The schedule has changed?"

For office workers, encountering problems at work is a very common occurrence, and they should politely nod and wait patiently. However, he showed a very incredulous expression, as if he were blaming someone.

Seeing this, the receptionist inwardly grumbled, but her excellent professionalism kept her smiling.